In heavy infestations, walking stick insects, both non-native and native,
can inflict substantial damage on selected plants, most apparently in neighborhoods,
parks, recreational areas and some wilderness areas. Fortunately, most species
have no wings. Those have to depend primarily on their spindly legs to expand
their range. That slows the spread of damage. Their advance may even be impeded
by relatively minor barriers such as streams or roads. By contrast, the mountain
pine beetle, which does have wings, has extended its range relatively rapidly,
spanning much of the western United States and southwestern Canada, killing tens
of millions of acres of pine trees.
Infestations
The walking stick prefers to feed on the foliage of certain broad-leafed
plants. It rarely attacks the needle-like leaves of the pines, firs or spruces.
Non-native or native, in heavy infestations, it can denude, for example, a stand
of oak trees.
Around San Diego, in southern California, for one example, the
Indian walking stick (Carausius morosus), an escaped species native to India,
has settled in comfortably, "feeding on the lush buffet of plants from ivy
to hibiscus," said
Elizabeth Fitzsimons, writing for The San Diego Union-Tribune in 2004.
In the eastern half of the United States, the native species called "Diapheromera
femorata" has defoliated stands of black oak, basswood and wild cherry,
according to Louis F. Wilson, U. S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service,
Forest Insect & Disease Leaflet 82.
In the Ouachita National Forest of Arkansas
and Oklahoma, heavy Diapheromera femorata infestations have defoliated stands
of oaks and other hardwoods, sometimes killing back branches and, in some cases,
even trees.
The walking stick leaves a distinctive mark, devouring an entire leaf blade,
down to the base of the heavy leaf veins. By contrast, other plant-eating animals
- certain grasshoppers or snails, for example - feed on the margins of leaves.
Control
Should you discover a heavy waking stick infestation in your yard or garden,
you may find that control will not be particularly easy. You have several choices,
for example:
Invite walking stick predators, for instance, insect-eating birds, to patrol
your yard and garden by putting up bird houses. This will take time to be effective.
Hand-pick walking sticks off your plants and boil or burn them, which will
kill both the walking sticks and their eggs. This will take patience and persistence
to be effective.
Spray plants with a general chemical insecticide for leaf-eating
insects. Check with your supplier or an appropriate government agency for recommendations
for an insecticide for walking sticks. Read and follow the directions to assure
safe and effective use.
Perhaps most importantly, if you keep walking sticks as
pets, you should be careful to prevent the escape or either the adults or the
nymphs, particularly if the insect is an imported species such as the popular
Indian walking stick. The non-native species may become especially destructive
because they have none of their natural enemies to control their proliferation.
Common Questions About Walking Sticks
Author: Jay Sharp
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